Lucy Ramirez
76, El Centro
Lucy Ramirez, 76, passed away peacefully on O ctober 3, 2 020 wit her husband Peter at her side. .
She was born on November 3, 1943 in El Centro to Benito and Severina Chavez. She attended El Centro schools and graduated from Central Union High in 1962.
As a teenager she worked for JJ Newberry and El Centro Drugs. She later worked at the Imperial County Road Department and was later employed by the State of California Labor Law Enforcement as a stenographer.
In 1963, she met her future husband Peter at the Red Top Drive- In in Brawley. T hey married on June 18, 1965 when he, a member of the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, was bound for Vietnam. They enjoyed 55 loving years of marriage together.
With the arrival of her two boys in 1968 and 1969 she opted to s tay home and raise them. In 1981, she welcomed her third child Melissa, the daughter she always w anted. She returned to school at age 45 and received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education a nd credentials in special education from San Diego S tate University. She retired from C alexico Unified School District in 2003.
As a devout R oman Catholic she lived a faith--based life and was a lifelong parishioner of S t. Mary’s Church. She loved traveling with s mall church groups, to visit Medugorje in Bosnia Herzegovinia, Fatima, Portugal, Lourdes, France, and Mexico City, Mexico. She a lso enjoyed traveling with her husband throughout the northwest and southwest United States.
She was an avid gardener and had her backyard lush and green all the time. She also enjoyed playing cards, praying, watching novelas and dining out with her husband. She cherished her grandkids deeply. To help them with school, she converted one of her bedrooms into a classroom so that she could tutor them, something she took g reat j oy in doing.
Besides her parents, she was preceded in death by her grandson Peter Michael Ramirez; siblings Armando Chavez, Socorro McDermott and Mario Chavez; sister- in- law Sylvia Chavez and nephew Benny Chavez.
She is survived by h er husband Peter; sons Peter M. Ramirez (Martha), Andrew Ramirez; daughter Melissa L ara (Frankie); grandchildren Mischa and Frankie Lara; step- grandson Robert Ballesteros; brother E rnesto Chavez of P alm Desert; sisters- in- law Rachael Chavez of La Mesa, Gavina Sabala o f Las Vegas, NV; brothers- in- law E ddie (Jenny) Ramirez, Salvador (Trini) Ramirez and Jesse Ramirez, all of B rawley. She also leaves behind numerous n ieces and nephews.
Viewing will be held from 8 to 9 a.m. on Tuesday, N ovember 10, 2020 at Hems Brothers Mortuary in El C entro. R osary will be at 9:30 a.m. at Our Lady o f Guadalupe Church, El C entro, with mass of Christian burial at 1 0 a. m., Father Ed. Horning, celebrant. Interment will follow at Evergreen Cemetery. Please wear face mask and use social d istancing precautions.
Those attending are encouraged to bring lawn chairs as outdoor seating will not be provided.